Ramblings and doodlings of an unsettled mind!

1MDB President Arul Kanda is taking on DAP Strategist and PJ Utara MP Tony Pua for monkeying around and ridiculling the public with his antics, despite many efforts already done by the Malaysian Government strategic investment corporation to put forth the right information and set the story right.

1MDB President and Group Executive Director statement:

Media statement by Arul Kanda, 1MDB President and Group Executive Director

Issued on 17 August 2015
For immediate publication

Tony Pua’s Monkey Business

We refer to a press statement today by YB Tony Pua, further to his “chicken challenge” issued yesterday. We note that today, YB Tony Pua refers to himself as a “monkey”.

1MDB is glad that YB Tony Pua is the “monkey on our back” and not one that “sees no evil, hears no evil and speaks no evil”. Such public scrutiny and questioning by YB Tony Pua is important to establish the truth. Hence despite his repeatedly unproven, recycled and reused allegations, we share below past clarifications issued by 1MDB, on the items rehashed yet again today by YB Tony Pua:

Dialogue

On 16 January 2015, Arul Kanda, in good faith, offered to engage with YB Tony Pua and share with him facts on 1MDB. However, as evidenced by YB Tony Pua’s subsequent and ongoing conduct, it is clear he is not interested in the truth. Rather, his aim is to score political points, undermine ongoing investigations and negatively impact 1MDB’s rationalisation plan.

Ongoing Investigations

YB Tony Pua is wrong to state that “there’s hardly anyone left investigating the company”. He has conveniently forgotten to highlight that lawful authorities such as the Attorney-General, Auditor-General, PDRM, BNM, MACC and PAC, are all currently pursuing investigations on 1MDB, in a thorough, professional and independent manner.

Fund Units

On 30 June 2015, 1MDB shared the following facts:

• Further to an earlier joint venture arrangement in 2009, 1MDB invested US$1.83 billion cash in murabaha notes issued by JV Co, a company that, by then, was 100% owned by PetroSaudi following the termination of the joint venture in March 2010.

• In June 2012, this entire amount was repaid by way of conversion into shares of PetroSaudi Oil Services Limited for a value of US$2.22 billion.

• Subsequently, in September 2012, 1MDB sold its shares in PetroSaudi Oil Services Limited for US$2.318 billion and received fund units in a Cayman registered fund. These fund units were owned by 1MDB via its 100% subsidiary, Brazen Sky, and held through BSI Bank Singapore as custodian.

• Accordingly, 1MDB invested a total of US$1.83 billion with PetroSaudi as murabaha notes, and ultimately received US$2.318 billion of fund units, representing a gain over time of US$488 million.

• The valuation of the fund units was undertaken by the fund administrator and is clearly described in 1MDB’s audited financial statements.

Further information referred to above can be found in the notes to 1MDB’s financial statements. Accordingly, contrary to Tony Pua’s claim, 1MDB has clearly provided detailed information on this – as above – on a number of occasions.

Such “monkey business” by YB Tony Pua does not benefit anyone. Malaysia is not a jungle – we have due process, procedures and laws to be followed. Accordingly, the lawful authorities must be allowed to carry on with their investigations.

1MDB is very much focused on the implementation of our rationalisation plan to stabilise the company and reduce our debts to a sustainable level. Please let us carry on with our job.

***************

As a very educated politician, Pua is misusing and abusing his position as the Opposition MP and member of the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee. In the continuous attacks and very active campaigning around the country on various platforms against 1MDB, Pua behaved as a judge, jury and executioner.

Which other SWF has had to implement a “rationalisation plan” to “stabilise” itself and to “reduce it’s debts to a sustainable level”?

That should be a simple enough question to answer.

Unless 1MDB is not a SWF. If it is not, then what exactly is it? A private equity firm? A GLC?

If 1MDB is a practitioner of using “OPM” (other people’s money) to acquire assets and build up it’s portfolio, then why does it have to “rationalise” itself and sell off it’s assets to reduce it’s debts?

Surely the owners of “OPM” would be willing to cut 1MDB some slack, would they not?

Aiyoyo, where got well educated if these people do those? Most politicians are like those. More so the DAP. Exploit every thing they can find. Trying to get the voters on their side.

And now UMNO Youth Head Khairy also saying things that may be difficult to understand. In Malacca he reiterated that the explanation on the RM2.6bil donation should be continued as the issue was a matter of interest among the grassroots. Wonder what his intentions are. He said Umno grassroots should have the courage to voice their grouses to the party leadership.

“I am openly stating that we can’t continue to be pak turut (yes men) and ignoring the fact that we are now in a serious debacle, we have to question the leadership.

“It’s not my intention to rebel against the leadership .. but .. We should find a solution how to wade this tidal wave before another tsunami hit us considering that the general election is another 30 months or so,” he added.

He also is concerned about GE14. Many of us are worried that UMNO/BN would lose the elections. And agree UMNO members should speak up and the RM2.6 billion explanation must continue.

Najib’s problem now is not just Tony Pua, DAP and others in the Opposition. It’s also substantial sectors of UMNO. And “extraneous” others (non-UMNO) in Johore and elsewhere.

The UMNO Pontian Division Annual Meeting revealed quite a bit on the attitude of the non-friendly-to-Najib sectors of UMNO. Talk about the “Cabinet reshuffle by What’sup” etc showed many UMNO divisions were not agreeable because Muhyiddin was dropped and it’s so near to PRU14.

Now Tun Dr Mahathir and son, Supreme Council member Mukhriz, continue to voice out disagreement with Najib.

Many think UMNO Youth Khairy is not sure of his stand but the man had openly declared he wanted to be PM by 40. He may have a strategy. He did well supporting retention of the Sedition Act.

The question uppermost in people’s minds now is: who is “the old man”? But so long as relevant questions on 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion are not answered satisfactorily, old, not so old and very old UMNO members would be wondering and expressing their views.

Poor leadership has led to the mess this country is in now. The rakyat must be allowed to speak up and there must be a liberal interpretation of what constitutes attempts to bring down the government other than through the ballot box.

Nevertheless, I would not mind any Police warnings and arrests of the Opposition blokes out to create instability and chaos in the country. Call it double or treble standards as far as that goes I don’t care.

The economic situation is bad, the ringgit at its lowest in 17 years, foreign investment trickling in, the GST causing hardship and nobody else should be blamed but the leaders. The effect the 1MDB scandal has had on all those must have been huge.

Najib was and is at the helm of the scandal. What the pro-Muhyiddin groups and the UMNO Youth leader have been saying should make him want to hasten the results of investigations on 1MDB and the RM2.6 billion credited into his account. Delaying crucial actions until 19 October will sure bring more criticisms against him.

Th heading says “Justo to give more evidence against portal”. But the AG’s statement it quoted does not say that – only the AG’s Chambers “is gathering more evidence against news website Sarawak Report from Xavier Andre Justo following his conviction in Thailand.”

And that it said it had “re­ceived positive response” from its Thai counterpart on the matter.

“We are in the process of obtaining further evidence under the treaty on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters among Asean countries,” it said in a statement.

What would be most useful is if Justo can be “interviewed” by Malaysian authorities. Good that there is a treaty on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters among Asean countries. Malaysian authorities should press for direct access to Justo for the said purpose under that treaty.

The Malaysian public will be a lot satisfied if Malaysian Police can get the truths to the many questions raised on 1MDB all this while directly from Justo. Even though he is now a proven and declared convict.

The A-G’s Chambers added that the arrest warrant issued on Aug 5 against Clare Rewcastle-Brown, who founded and runs the Sarawak Report, was in relation to the on­­going investigation by police into an allegation that the website published a false report concerning a draft charge sheet, the A-G’s Chambers said.

The article was “Arrest Warrant for the Prime Minister – The Real Reason the Attorney-General Was Fired” on July 30, it said.

The A-G’s Chambers said it was very serious about the matter because the stability of the country was at risk. I agree.

But the “interview” on Justo should not be confined to just that. It should cover the whole range of questions raised by the Malaysian public on 1MDB. All in UMNO/BN, including UMNO Youth Khairy Jamaluddin, have said elections are not far away and they must want the voters fully explained on 1MDB issues before PRU14.

In the statement issued by the AG Chambers, the department also assured the public that all investigation papers submitted by the Police would be studied thoroughly and given serious attention as the offences involved would affect the country’s stability.

Hopefully they would lead to prosecution of the wrong doers. On both sides of the divide. And if Tony Pua is the subject of one of those investigation papers, of course, he, too.